The Sunspire Boojums, snarks, spectral goats

Set sometime after the Redshank thread.  @Terance perhaps, since you wanted a thread? :D

Treason had been a bit on edge since the incident with Redshank, but perhaps in a different way than others.  Yes, she was again patrolling the borders again, but her steps seemed more uneven and her overall aura was probably more frustrated than worried that the same thing would happen again so soon.  Though if it did, she'd relish the chance.

In fact she wondered how long it would be until she got her next opportunity, to refine her skills and try again.  To learn to bend the foolish to her will with far less effort, far more precision.  There had to be some place that would cause a far more exaggerated response than what she'd attempted this past time.  It was just unfortunate that it seemed unlikely that anyone in their right mind would let her experiment on them.  Though if she did find someone like that, she'd certainly have to convince them to come play with her.

Instead, for now she was limited to just checking to make sure that any hint of Redshank's trespass was marked as seen, dealt with, and they were on to the next thing.  For their sake, hopefully no joiners today, as Treason would likely be more prickly than usual.

Wraen had heard a brief recap of, what had transpired on the borders, while she had been away, hunting in the plains. She was annoyed at herself about having missed such an important event, where her pack's safety had been at stake, but was glad to find out that people had got away unharmed. The spring was coming, but they could not afford having injured wolves in the absence of a trained healer.

She had discovered footprints of a porcupine in the vicinity of the borders and, recalling that one time, when she had got a taste of it's meat, followed the trail. The scent was not entirely fresh and, Wraen had no idea, how to hunt those prickly beasts safely and therefore no plan about, what to do, when she run into her object of interest. Luck would have it that she spotted Treason in the distance. And with a good faith that she might have some tips of, how to deal with prey that could injure your badly, if you weren't careful, she called out to her: "Hey, would you mind coming over for a moment?"

Whatever it was, with that kind of greeting, it didn't seem like it was going to be important, at least from Treason's perspective, but that was her at her most Negative Nancy.  She was monitoring for intruders -- it was the most important, given recent events.  But at the same time, she'd best play nice and actually get to know packmates a bit better.  Ah well.  She'd give Wraen the benefit of the doubt, as Treason hadn't gotten to the section nearest her yet.  Maybe there was something there.

Either way, she tilted her head, then wandered that way, not sure if she should be ready for something to happen or if this was some request that she'd probably be mentally calling dumb in a few minutes.  Ok, let's be real.  It's Treason.  If it isn't gonna cause the end of the world, she'll probably be thinking it's dumb.  What's going on?

"Hi!" Wraen greeted Treason again, when the she-wolf had come nearer and the hunter could have a very good look at the packmate. She had not been around, when the white lady with dark markings on her nape and shoulders had been added to the group, but had seen her from the distance and Terance had explained to her, who she was. She was impressed by the other's size and considerable build and even took a step back, because the mental presence the other radiated was very strong.

She also could not shake off the feeling that now that she had drawn the guardian's attention her inquiry about the game she was after was not as important as the primary task. Yet - here the wolf was and for time being she could use it's help to the best she could. "Ever hunted a porcupine? There is one in the vicinity and I need help - if you have time to spare, of course," she said with a smile. "Spoils will be shared in equal parts, but I cannot guarantee the success."

A what now?  Treason canted her head, Isn't that the spiky thing?  She was actually kind of perplexed who would even find them edible -- they looked like they'd be far more effort than they'd be worth, and at least to her they smelled pretty bad.  Wouldn't hunting deer be more food for the effort, or do you think some idiot's gonna try and go after it?  Treason would probably be far more likely to laugh at someone if they did bite a porcupine than she was likely to risk getting quilled in the face.  It didn't sound pleasant.  She didn't want to be the mentioned idiot, but if there was some secret weapon to use against them -- Could you drown them? Roll a rock down onto them? -- then maybe it'd be best if Treason learned a thing or two, not that she expected to hunt them much.

Wraen did not know Treason very well, therefore she was taken aback by the she-wolf's very insulting manner of speaking. She drew her ears backwards and listened to the end of the guardian's speech with the unmistakeable feeling that not only she had asked the wrong person for the task, but that she also did not like the same person very much. 

"I tend to choose prey that I can take down myself," she replied calmly. "And for two wolves a deer is too big of a game than working in a team on taking down something smaller," except for Bernard, whose size and strength was enough to battle creatures of all sizes. "I invited you to see, if there is anything to be done about the animal in question, not to take unneccessary risks," she defended her actions.

"But if that removes you from other important tasks - don't bother," and expecting the answer to this remark to be just as rude as the first one, she moved away from Treason and picked up the track she had taken earlier.

Treason was genuinely confused and it was briefly visible on her face.  What the hell was her problem?  Did she consider herself an idiot and was personally offended?  She hadn't even been trying to be particularly offensive.  This chick was just sensitive as all hell, apparently, and Treason mentally noted to not let her deal with any important crud at the borders if she could help it -- didn't need someone that easily offended flouncing about.

She looked Wraen over again shrewdly -- a deer would be no problem for two wolves Treason's own size (especially by this time next year), but yeah, perhaps being on the shrimpier side probably meant a third would be necessary at least.  But the fact that she just crossed it off the list entirely?  Treason wondered if Wraen was too wrapped up in her own little world, dismissing the abilities of other packmates and assuming that everyone was just like her.  Or something like that.  Honestly, thus far this made no sense and she was half willing to figuratively throw her hands up in the air and walk away from the whole thing.

She was obviously slightly irritated at her blowing up like that, but her temper held firm, her words flat, That was what I was asking about.  Was it food or a danger, that had been the whole point of her earlier question.  Either way, Treason wasn't going to chase after her.  If she wanted to throw a tantrum over literally nothing, she could go be a child somewhere else.  This would only be a minor distraction if she was determined to leave.

Aside from the frequent rows with sister Sarah, Wraen had not much experience in dealing with conflicts and making a point. Especially, if the person opposite of her was as hard and solid as a flint. And here she was presented with a person, who questioned her ideas and would need a very good reason to move an inch, even though she was on the lower step of the hierarchy than Wraen herself.

How did Terance and Rannoch exert dominance and made their point besides using their advantage of size? She decided to ask them next time she met either of the two and this would have been the end of the short intercourse with Treason, had she not spotted a movement some distance away, made out the shape of coyote in the creature and what was more - a piece of something in his mouth that looked suspiciously like a thing taken from her caches. 

"That son of a bitch," Wraen muttered to her, and went past the guardian to chase the thief down.

It seemed likely that she was going to head off, and for that, Treason was thankful.  She could go back to something productive and worry about this nonsense another day.  Or not.  Wraen seemed to pick up on something that was far enough ahead that Treason simply hadn't gotten to that chunk of the borders yet and thus had no clue some other, far lesser canine had breached the borders.  Her ears tilted forward, looking where Wraen now was.  Treason only saw a flicker of whatever it was, but instinct told her to follow.  There'd be no asking for permission, no further questions.

Going downhill at least allowed her to easily keep up with the smaller wolf, gravity and her own giving her some speed assist.  The scent of the coyote soon filled her nostrils.  It urged her on with a low growl as snow was flung behind her.  She could now see the coyote trying to flee before them, but Treason, being a few strides behind, wasn't in the greatest position to do much about it other than continue the chase.  She'd be taking Wraen's lead, even if their moments-ago interaction made her question it.

Wraen caught up with the coyote and was at it's heels for a while, but as the animal was just as fast as she was, she did not gain an upper hand or any other opportunity to either grab it or knock it down. However, with Treason now close to her (she rather heard than saw the guardian and therefore guessed her approximate location and distance from her), and idea came to her mind. She put a little more effort in her stride and at the right moment with a swift move to the left cut the coyote's route. The canid avoided her, but in it's confusion turned and began running in the direction of the other wolf.

Your choice if it scrabbles free!

The best thing about being in the tail of the chase was you could cut every corner the others took, and that was the way this was going to end if Treason had anything to say about it.  The problem was if she didn't get a perfect strike, Treason wasn't going to be able to easily execute the coyote for its behavior.  But, like the cartoon, they were wily beasts, and in a chase there was far more of a chance she'd end up with a coyote's butt in her mouth rather than its neck.  Did she trust Wraen to do the job?  She wasn't sure.  They'd find out soon unless Treason totally flubbed it.  And there came the move.  Wraen dipped and the coyote dodged, so Treason moved to intercept.

It veered away from her as well, kicking up a lovely fan of snow as it tried to slalom a third direction on the slopes near the mountain's feet.  It was a tad bit too late.  Treason lunged, snarling maw arcing down on the coyote's hip, latching on to the muscles near the joint socket.  A pained yip sent the stolen meat tumbling free, flung a few yards away.  It wasn't the best grip, but it was enough that when combined with the wolf's momentum that the lesser canid toppled onto its side, practically bouncing on the snow surface as it tried to regain its footing and get away -- it had a better chance of that than it did of winning a fight against two wolves.  Treason yanked her head back, turning the coyote into a bit of a wheelbarrow, but the slim creature's flesh was pulling dangerously close to ripping free of her grasp.

Treason was a master of the craft and her instincts worked perfectly - seeing her catching the coyote, cleared Wraen's head of any doubts that this recruit could execute a much bigger prey with the same grace and elegance. The thief let go of the piece of meat it had stolen and was hold fast by the guardian. However the little canid did not wish to part from it's life without a giving a fight, therefore it struggled to get itself free. 

Wraen decided not to wait and see it go away. Stealing was a crime to be punished for - and people rarely learned their lesson by being talked to or being beaten up. More often than not they would show up on your doorstep again. Because, as long as food was behind those doors, vermin would flock around. Let them have a lesson then. She reached the two in few strides and grabbed the coyote's neck with skill and speed. There was a yelp and a quiet moan afterwards, when her jaws snapped the vertebrae and a moment later the thief went limp. 

Wraen let go and took a step back: "Good job. What are we going to do with it now?"

So apparently she didn't have to worry too much after all.  The coyote became a thing of the past.  Treason made a huff of affirmation, then spoke, letting the corpse finally drop from her jaws, Depends.  Think anyone would be desperate enough to eat it?  Probably just leave it out for the crows.  The question wasn't serious, and her tone shifted slightly to show that.  There was no saying her jokes would appeal to everyone anyway -- and by everyone, that probably meant most people.

As her breathing normalized, she continued When there's one there might be another.  But will the porcupine or what the hell ever try and steal stuff too, or just be a nuisance?  She was not the expert on such creatures, but her stubborn nature just wasn't going to let it drop.  Not to mention she was, as always, eager to prove that she was in the right and that Wraen had just gone up in arms over nothing.  Besides, she'd rather prioritize a coyote problem than spiky beasts.  Coyotes would probably be more fun to hunt down and dispose of, anyway.

"I think we better take it out and away from the territory. Not to attract more hungry mouths than we actually need around here," Wraen suggested, looking down at the coyote carcass and then casting a glance up. How the crows knew, where fresh meat would happen, was beyond her, but already there were three or four pairs of black-bead eyes looking back at her. 

"We should keep an eye out for these guys," she said her mind so preoccupied of, how to keep the caches she had instilled safe, that she did not hear the latter part of the question about, whether porcupines were a problem too. "I caught one lurking around the other evening," she added. "I will have to find a better place for caches, deeper in the territory though. Can't have them steal from them consistently. Better even, if they have no idea that food is stashed around here."

Too much talking, not enough action.  A lot of wolves seemed to have that problem, from Treason's perspective.  Eh.  I'll take it farther away before finishing patrol, then.  It wasn't like the birds were going to be prevented from showing up in inconvenient places just by moving something a hundred yards away or something.  Preventing that sort of raid was up to the ones making the cache, which Treason didn't consider her primary duty in the world.

Will watch for them.  Probably just here because the pack's new.  They forgot wolves are dangerous.  She didn't know what went on in coyotes' brains either.  Probably complete nonsense, like a lot of wolves'.  Treason licked her lips, then swept a glance that traced from the land beyond the borders, the coyote, Wraen, then up the hill.  The coyote disposal site was one way, caches were the other.  So it was up to Wraen whether there was anything else to do before they'd split up to do their own things (or so she was assuming).

Obviously, the avoidance of the porcupine topic had totally been because Wraen was purposely avoiding it.  Though incorrect, Treason marked it up as a victory.

"I can help you with that," Wraen offered her help out of good practice of comradeship and not because she thought that Treason would need any assistance in disposing of a body. She was tall and strong wolf by the looks of it and secretly the young hunter was glad that she was standing on the same lines with this wolf and not opposing her.

If her packmate accepted her help, they would take the corpse away together. If not - Wraen would wish the she-wolf a good day's luck in patrolling and turn to check the caches thoroughly.

Last one from me! Thank you for the thread!